Legislation moving toward Gov. Rick Snyder would make permanent a ban against Michigan doctors prescribing abortion-inducing drugs remotely.
The Republican-controlled House passed the bill almost entirely along party lines early Thursday after it won Senate approval weeks ago.
A 2012 abortion law includes a provision requiring physicians to conduct a physical exam of a patient wanting a medical abortion, which is when drugs are used to end a pregnancy. They cannot use other means, including a webcam, to diagnose and prescribe a medical abortion. And they must be present when the drugs are dispensed.
That section and another one mandating that certain information be given to the patient are due to expire after Dec. 31. The legislation would extend the requirements and prohibitions indefinitely.
